PART 1
World review of fisheries and aquaculture

FISHERIES RESOURCES: TRENDS IN PRODUCTION, UTILIZATION AND TRADE

OVERVIEW

Global production from capture fisheries and aquaculture supplied about 101 million tonnes of food fish in 2002, providing an apparent per capita supply of 16.2 kg (live weight equivalent), with aquaculture accounting for the growth in per capita supply since 2000 (Tables 1 and 2 and Figures 1 and 2). Outside China, the world’s population has been increasing more quickly than the total food fish supply; as a result the average per capita fish supply outside China declined from 14.6 kg in 1987 to 13.2 kg in 1992 and has since remained stable (Figure 2). Overall, fish provided more than 2.6 billion people with at least 20 percent of their average per capita animal protein intake. The share of fish proteins in total world animal protein supplies grew from 14.9 percent in 1992 to a peak of 16.0 percent in 1996 and remained close to that level (15.9 percent) in 2001.

Preliminary estimates for 2003 based on reporting by some major fishing countries indicate that total world fishery production decreased slightly (–1 percent) compared with 2002. However, the total amount of fish available for human consumption increased to 103 million tonnes and, on average, the per capita supply was maintained. The decrease in capture fisheries resulting from the contraction of reduction fisheries in some major fishmeal-producing countries was partly compensated for by increases in other food fisheries and aquaculture.

China remains by far the largest producer, with reported fisheries production of 44.3 million tonnes in 2002 (16.6 and 27.7 million tonnes from capture fisheries and aquaculture, respectively), providing an estimated domestic food supply of 27.7 kg per capita as well as production for export and non-food purposes. However, there are continued indications that capture fisheries and aquaculture production statistics for China may be too high, as indicated in The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture 2002,¹ and that this problem has existed since the early 1990s. Because of the importance of China and the uncertainty about its production statistics, China, as in previous issues of this report, is generally discussed separately from the rest of the world.

Global landings from capture fisheries (Figure 3) remained relatively stable in the four years 1999–2002. World capture fisheries production in 2002 was 93.2 million tonnes (84.5 million tonnes marine and 8.7 million tonnes inland), slightly above production in 2001. After increasing from about 79 million tonnes in 1998 to 87 million tonnes in 2000, the world marine capture fisheries production decreased to about 84 million tonnes in 2001 and remained at that level in 2002. Inland capture fisheries production fluctuated slightly around 8.7 million tonnes during 2000–02.

There are considerable variations in marine catches among regions. Between 2000 and 2002, catches decreased in the Northwest and Southeast Pacific, and in the Eastern Central and Southwest Atlantic, but were still growing in the tropical regions of the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Catches in the temperate Northeast Atlantic and Mediterranean did not show significant variations, while in the Northwest Atlantic and in the Northeast Pacific, total catches increased in 2001 and remained stable in 2002. There has been a consistent downward trend since 1974 in the proportion of stocks offering potential for expansion, coupled with an increase in the proportion of overexploited and depleted stocks, from about 10 percent in the mid-1970s to close to 25 percent in the early 2000s (see Figure 19). The percentage of stocks exploited at or beyond their maximum sustainable levels varied widely among fishing regions. Information available continues to confirm that, despite local differences, the global potential for marine capture fisheries has been reached, and more rigorous plans are needed to rebuild depleted stocks and prevent the decline of those being exploited at or close to their maximum potential.

By contrast, global production from aquaculture continues to grow, in terms of both quantity and its relative contribution to the world’s supply of fish for direct human consumption. Production in 2002 (51.4 million tonnes,² with China accounting for 71 percent) was 6.1 percent higher than in 2000. The aquaculture sector, excluding China, contributed 12 million tonnes to food fish supplies³ in 2002, compared with 53 million tonnes from capture fisheries (China produced 28 million tonnes from aquaculture and 7 million tonnes from capture fisheries). Aquaculture production of food fish continues to be mainly (57.7 percent) from freshwater. Developing countries accounted for 90.7 percent of production in 2002, consisting of predominantly herbivorous/omnivorous or filter-feeding species. All continents showed increases in production during 2000–02 with the exception of Europe, where production remained relatively unchanged. Growth in production of the major species groups continues to be rapid, although, with the exception of crustaceans, there were signs of a slowdown during 2000–02. The shift to sustainable culture practices and development strategies remains a work in progress and a key objective; some countries (mainly developed countries) have achieved significant advances in this respect, but in many others much still remains to be done.

In 2002, about 76 percent (100.7 million tonnes) of estimated world fisheries production was used for direct human consumption. The remaining 24 percent (32.2 million tonnes) was destined for non-food products, mainly the manufacture of fishmeal and oil, slightly (0.4 percent) above levels in 1999 but 5.8 percent below levels in 2000.

Total world trade of fish and fishery products increased to US$58.2 billion (export value) in 2002, up 5 percent relative to 2000 and showing a 45 percent increase since 1992. In terms of quantity, exports were reported to be 50 million tonnes in 2002,⁴ a slight decrease (1 percent) from the 2000 level. The quantity of fish traded has been stagnant in the last few years following decades of strong increases, and it is unlikely that the increasing trends of pre-2000 years will be repeated in the short term.

The number of individuals earning an income from primary sector employment in fisheries and aquaculture in 2002 reached about 38 million (see Table 7), a marginal increase over 2001. Of these, more than one-third were employed full-time and the rest were part-time and occasional workers. Together, this workforce represented 2.8 percent of the 1.33 billion people who were economically active in agriculture worldwide, compared with 2.3 percent in 1990. The highest numbers of fishers and aquaculture workers (85 percent worldwide) are in Asia, with China accounting for nearly one-third of the world total. The share of employment in capture fisheries is stagnating in the most important fishing nations and increased opportunities are being provided by aquaculture. Since 2000, however, in some developed countries, employment in aquaculture has started to level off, in parallel with the observed slowdown in the growth of production for some species.

The vast majority of the world fishing fleet is concentrated in Asia (about 85 percent of total decked vessels, 50 percent of powered undecked vessels and 83 percent of total non-powered boats). In 2002, the number of large vessels increased to 24 406, but growth has halted as many nations have adopted capacity containment programmes. Records show that in 2002 about 13 percent of these large vessels were less than ten years old, and 28 percent were above 30 years of age (compared with 30 and 6 percent, respectively, in 1992). Indications are that the fleet size of some major fishing nations has continued to decrease.

A clear shift in the role of regional fishery bodies (RFBs) has occurred since the adoption of key international fisheries instruments following the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED). Many RFBs have reviewed or amended their respective agreements or conventions in response to their strengthened post-UNCED role in conservation and management. Generally, they are taking innovative and cooperative action to implement international fisheries instruments, many of these in an effort to rebuild depleted stocks, prevent further decline and to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing. RFBs are constrained by the unwillingness of Member States to delegate sufficient decision-making power and responsibilities to the RFBs, and their reluctance to implement decisions taken by the RFBs. The movement of RFBs towards becoming bodies with fishery management functions is placing greater demands on their decision-making capacity.

CAPTURE FISHERIES PRODUCTION

Total capture fisheries production

In 2002, total capture fisheries production amounted to 93.2 million tonnes, slightly (0.3 million tonnes) above production in 2001 (Table 1). The first sale value of this catch amounted to around US$78 billion, representing a 1.6 percent decline compared with the value in 2000, partly caused by a decrease of catch and a decline of the unit value of landings for food consumption. Within the total value, reduction fisheries accounted for nearly US$3 billion. Global catches (Figure 3) remained stable during the last four years for which complete statistics are available (1999–2002), with the exception of 2000 when annual catches exceeded by over 2 million tonnes the level of preceding and subsequent years, a consequence of the remarkable increase in the environmentally driven recovery of stocks of Peruvian anchoveta. Preliminary estimates indicate that global marine catches decreased in 2003 by about 3 million tonnes compared with 2002. This decrease roughly corresponds to the drop in catches of Peruvian anchoveta and other reduction species in the Southeast Pacific.

The top ten capture fishery producing countries have not changed since 1992. In 2002, their cumulative catches represented 60 percent of the world total, with China and Peru still leading the ranking in both 2001 and 2002 (Figure 4). Capture production reported by China has remained fairly stable since 1998 (Figure 3), while trends in Peruvian total capture production are always strongly influenced by variations in anchoveta catches.

World marine capture fisheries production

Marine capture fisheries production in 2002 was 84.5 million tonnes, representing a decline of 2.6 percent with respect to 2000 and a minor increase of 0.4 percent in comparison with 2001 catches.

During the past decade, the reported landings of marine capture fisheries have fluctuated between 80 and 86 million tonnes (average 1993–2003, 84 million tonnes), a slight increase over the preceding decade (average, 77 million tonnes). It should be noted that, between the two periods, the quantity of marine fish caught and discarded has fallen by several million tonnes (see the section on discards in marine capture fisheries). This came about, inter alia, through improved gear selectivity and fishing practices (that reduced bycatch), fisheries management that decreased access to some stocks (by reducing allowable catches and including the closure of some fisheries), no-discard policies in some countries (that forced landings of all catches) and growing demand for fish combined with improved technologies and opportunities for utilizing bycatch. Despite the uncertainty regarding the total decrease in discards and the proportion of that decrease resulting from improved fisheries management, increased demand and improved processing, respectively, there is no doubt that marine capture fisheries are moving towards a more appropriate use of wild fish stocks.

The Northwest and Southeast Pacific are still the most productive marine fishing areas (Figure 5), although total catches in these two areas decreased by 1.8 and 2.0 million tonnes in 2002 compared with 2000 levels. Catches also decreased substantially from 2000 levels in the Eastern Central and Southwest Atlantic. In the former area, catches had increased in 2001 but decreased by more than 0.5 million tonnes in 2002, largely as a result of reduced small pelagic and cephalopod catches. In the Southwest Atlantic, cephalopod catches have declined even more dramatically, from 1.2 million tonnes in 1999 to 0.54 million tonnes in 2002. By contrast, catches were still growing in fishing areas that mostly lie in the tropical regions of the Indian and Pacific Oceans, where catches of large (mainly tuna) and small pelagic species continued to increase. Among the main fishing areas in temperate waters, total catches in the Northeast Atlantic and Mediterranean did not show significant variations, while in the Northwest Atlantic and in the Northeast Pacific, total catches increased in 2001 and remained stable in 2002.

After the high catches of 2000 (the third highest ever at 11.3 million tonnes), anchoveta decreased to 7.2 million tonnes in 2001 and recovered to 9.7 million tonnes in 2002, ranking once again as the most caught marine species (Figure 6). Other major Clupeoid species (e.g. Atlantic herring, Japanese anchovy and European pilchard/sardine) did not show a common catch trend in the latest years, as species belonging to this group are strongly influenced by the variability of local environmental conditions. Overall catches of the Gadiformes group of species (e.g. cods, hakes and haddocks) continued to decrease and by 2002 had reached their lowest levels since 1967. The value of these catches for food uses amounted to US$5.7 billion, representing 8 percent of the total value of landings for consumption. Alaska pollock and blue whiting, the two major species in terms of catches, but of low commercial value, also decreased in 2002 following a significant increase in 2001. After minor decreases in 2000 and 2001, total catches of tuna and tuna-like species exceeded 6 million tonnes for the first time in 2002, accounting for 11 percent of the total value of landings for consumption. Increased catches were also realized from tropical species such as skipjack (the third global species in 2002) and yellowfin tunas. Geographically, catches increased in the two central Pacific fishing areas and the Western Indian Ocean, while in the other fishing areas tuna catches were stable (e.g. the Eastern Indian Ocean) or decreasing (e.g. the Northwest and Southeast Pacific). Total catches of the three major small pelagic species (capelin, Chilean jack mackerel and chub mackerel) increased in 2001 by 33.2 percent in comparison with 2000 but decreased in 2002 by 13.5 percent from 2001 levels.

Catches of oceanic species occurring principally in high seas waters continued to increase (see Box 1).

Catches of the “sharks, rays, chimaeras” group have been stable since 1996 at about 0.8 million tonnes. However, a possible reduction of shark catches may be masked by the remarkable recent improvement in the species breakdown of reported catches (previously mostly combined under the generic item “Elasmobranchii” or even classified as “Marine fishes not identified”) following the efforts of FAO and RFBs to improve shark statistics. In 1996, the FAO capture database included data for 45 species items in the shark group; this more than doubled to 95 species items in 2002 and now represents more than 7 percent of the total, at 1 347.

Total catch production of both marine crustaceans and molluscs declined slightly from their 2000 peak over the following two years. Production trends of cephalopods since the low catches recorded in 1998 have shown marked variation among the three major species: catches of the Eastern Pacific jumbo flying squid rose steeply (2002 catches were 15 times higher than those in 1998); catches of the Western Pacific Japanese flying squid grew markedly in 1999 and 2000 but have been decreasing since; and catches of the Argentine shortfin squid, which in 1999 had reached 1.1 million tonnes in the Southwest Pacific, dropped in the subsequent three years and by 2002 were half of the 1999 maximum.

World inland capture fisheries production

Total catches from inland waters remained stable at around 8.7 million tonnes in the 2000–02 period. It should be noted, however, that reporting of global inland fisheries production continues to present problems owing to the lack of reliable information on catch quantities and species composition. In many countries, catches by rural communities, who are often the main users of the resource, are not reported in national statistics. Accordingly, the figures on total catch provided here should be considered indicative.

Africa and Asia contributed about 90 percent of global inland capture production in 2002 (Figure 7). Compared with 2000, catches in 2002 have grown by about 0.6 percent in the Asia inland fishing area, 2 percent in Africa, and 9 percent in South America. Catches decreased in Europe (by 18 percent), North and Central America (by 9.8 percent) and Oceania (by 0.5 percent).

The principal ten producers accounted for about 66 percent of global production from inland capture fisheries in 2002 (Figure 8). China, the top producer, has reported stable inland catches since 1998 and still produces one-quarter of the global inland catches. The Russian Federation and Kenya, which ranked fifth and tenth respectively in 2000, dropped out of the top ten list in 2002 and were superseded by Myanmar and Brazil. The Russian Federation now ranks twelfth following a dramatic decrease in catch during the last two years.

The bulk of world production (68.1 percent) came from developing countries other than China and only 6.1 percent from developed countries, classified either as “Economies in transition” or as “Industrialized countries” (Table 3). The divergence between developed and developing countries in the importance of inland catches is further evidenced by the fact that, in 2002, not one developed country was among the top ten world producers (Figure 8).

Reporting of inland catch by species group remains very poor for many countries and does not permit detailed analysis of trends in catch composition given the unknown portion of catches that may have been reported at higher taxonomic levels or not identified at all. In 2002, about 50 percent of the global inland water catches were reported as “Freshwater fishes not elsewhere included” (Figure 9). China accounts for the great majority of reported world catches of freshwater crustaceans (94 percent) and molluscs (87 percent). Compared with 2000 levels, reported catches for 2002 of freshwater crustaceans were higher by about 44 percent, carps and other cyprinids by 3.7 percent and molluscs by 6 percent, while tilapia catches remained stable. Catches of the “shads” group were the highest ever in 2000 but more than halved in 2002.

AQUACULTURE PRODUCTION

According to FAO statistics, the contribution of aquaculture to global supplies of fish, crustaceans and molluscs continues to grow, increasing from 3.9 percent of total production by weight in 1970 to 29.9 percent in 2002. Aquaculture continues to grow more rapidly than all other animal food-producing sectors. Worldwide, the sector has grown at an average rate of 8.9 percent per year since 1970, compared with only 1.2 percent for capture fisheries and 2.8 percent for terrestrial farmed meat-production systems over the same period. Production from aquaculture has greatly outpaced population growth, with the world average per capita supply from aquaculture increasing from 0.7 kg in 1970 to 6.4 kg in 2002, representing an average annual growth rate of 7.2 percent, based largely on China-reported growth.

In 2002, total world aquaculture production (including aquatic plants) was reported to be 51.4 million tonnes by quantity and US$60.0 billion by value. This represents an annual increase of 6.1 percent in quantity and 2.9 percent in value, respectively, over reported figures for 2000. In 2002, countries in Asia accounted for 91.2 percent of the production quantity and 82 percent of the value. Of the world total, China is reported to produce 71.2 percent of the total quantity and 54.7 percent of the total value of aquaculture production.

Table 4 shows the top ten producers of fish, crustaceans and molluscs in 2002, together with the top ten producers in terms of annual growth in aquaculture production in 2000–02. All continents except Europe showed increases in production from 2000 to 2002; in Europe production remained relatively unchanged (0.1 percent annual decrease).

World aquatic plant production in 2002 was 11.6 million tonnes (US$6.2 billion), of which 8.8 million tonnes (US$4.4 billion) originated from China, 0.89 million tonnes from the Philippines and 0.56 million tonnes from Japan. Japanese kelp (Laminaria japonica – 4.7 million tonnes) showed the highest production, followed by Nori (Porphyra tenera – 1.3 million tonnes). An additional 4 million tonnes were reported by countries as “Aquatic plants” and not further specified.

The rapid growth in production of the different major species groups continues. However, in the period 2000–02 there were indications that the extraordinary growth rates seen in the 1980s and 1990s were slowing slightly (Figure 10, Table 5). Although the growth in production of crustaceans increased in the period 2000–02, growth rates for the other species groups had begun to slow and the overall growth rate, while still substantial, was lower than those experienced over the past 20 years. Aquaculture production in terms of quantity and value for major species groups in 2002 is presented in Figure 11.

The top ten species groups in terms of production quantity and percentage increase in production quantity from 2000 to 2002 are presented in Table 6. Production of carps and other cyprinids far exceeded that for all other species groups, accounting for nearly 42 percent (16.7 million tonnes) of total production of fish, crustaceans and molluscs. Combined, the top ten species groups accounted for 92.5 percent of the total aquaculture production of fish, crustaceans and molluscs. The largest production for an individual species was the Pacific cupped oyster (Crassostrea gigas – 4.2 million tonnes), followed by three species of carp – the silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrix – 4.1 million tonnes), grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idellus – 3.6 million tonnes) and common carp (Cyprinus carpio – 3.2 million tonnes).

Two high-value species of finfish appear in the top ten species groups in Table 6, with the largest percentage increases in production reflecting emerging activities. First, farming of Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) has begun in Norway and Iceland. Second, the aquaculture of wild-caught tuna by fattening in sea-cages is an increasingly important activity in Mexico, Australia and the Mediterranean region and is now spreading to other areas. According to FAO statistical definitions, the net weight gain in captivity should be attributed to aquaculture, but few countries known to have fattening operations have reported any production from tuna farming as aquaculture. Thus the increase suggested by the official statistics is only a small part of the actual increase in production.

Most aquaculture production of fish, crustaceans and molluscs continues to come from the freshwater environment (57.7 percent by quantity and 48.4 percent by value) (Figure 12). Mariculture contributes 36.5 percent of production and 35.7 percent of the total value. Although brackish-water production represented only 5.8 percent of aquaculture production quantity in 2002, it contributed 15.9 percent of the total value, reflecting the prominence of high-value crustaceans and finfish. Aquaculture production trends for inland and marine waters over the period 1970–2000 are presented in Figure 13.⁵

During this period, reported Chinese inland water aquaculture production increased at an average annual rate of 11.1 percent, compared with 6.9 percent for the rest of the world. Similarly, reported Chinese aquaculture production in marine areas increased at an average annual rate of 10.9 percent compared with 5.5 percent for rest of the world.

Unlike terrestrial farming systems, where the bulk of global production is based on a limited number of animal and plant species, over 220 different farmed aquatic animal and plant species were reported in 2002. On the basis of aquaculture production statistics reported to FAO at the species level, the top ten species account for 69 percent of total production, and the top 25 species for over 90 percent.

It is noteworthy that the growth of aquaculture production of fish, crustaceans and molluscs in developing countries has exceeded the corresponding growth in developed countries, proceeding at an average annual rate of 10.4 percent since 1970. By contrast, aquaculture production in developed countries has been increasing at an average rate of 4.0 percent per year. In developing countries other than China, production has grown at an annual rate of 7.8 percent. In 1970, developing countries accounted for 58.8 percent of production, while in 2002 their share had risen to 90.7 percent. With the exception of marine shrimp, the bulk of aquaculture production in developing countries in 2002 comprised omnivorous/herbivorous fish or filter-feeding species. By contrast, 74 percent of the finfish culture production in developed countries was of carnivorous species.

FISHERS AND FISH FARMERS

In 2002, fishery and aquaculture production activities provided direct employment and revenue to an estimated 38 million people (Table 7), a marginal increase compared with the previous year. The world number of fishers and fish farmers has been growing at an average rate of 2.6 percent per year since 1990.

Fishers and aquaculture workers represented 2.8 percent of the 1.33 billion people economically active in agriculture worldwide in 2002, compared with 2.3 percent in 1990. Most continents are close to the world average; exceptions are Africa, where the percentage of fishers and aquaculture workers is lower, at 1.3 percent of the total agricultural labour force, and North and Central America, where the share is 1 percent above the world average. Fishing in marine and inland waters accounted for 75 percent of the total number of workers, while aquaculture production provided employment for the remaining 25 percent. These figures are only indicative, as some countries do not yet collect employment data separately for the two sectors and some other countries’ national systems do not yet account for fish farming.

The highest numbers of fishers and aquaculture workers are in Asia (87 percent of the world total) followed by Africa (7 percent), Europe, North and Central America and South America, (about 2 percent each) and Oceania (0.2 percent). These shares closely reflect the population shares of the different continents, the share of the population economically active in agriculture and the relative predominance of labour-intensive fisheries in some economies in Africa and Asia.

Fishing in marine and inland waters is often a part-time occupation (almost 60 percent of the total), as a result of the variations in seasonal resource availability and also because fishing is generally regulated through a series of measures that limit year-round activity (e.g. closures of selected fisheries at certain times of the year, limits on total annual catches of selected species so that commercial fishers may fish for only a few days of each month until the quota is reached) or limit the number of commercial licences and the number of fish caught per trip. Increasingly, operators have to turn to other activities for supplementary income.

Although the national statistics available to FAO are often too irregular and lacking in detail to permit a more in-depth analysis of the employment structure at world level, it is apparent that, in most important fishing nations that systematically provide this information, the share of employment in capture fisheries is stagnating and increased opportunities are being provided by aquaculture.

In China, where the combined numbers of fishers and fish farmers (12.3 million) represent nearly one-third of the world total, in 2002, 8.4 million people worked in capture fisheries and 3.9 million in aquaculture. However, existing fleet-size reduction programmes in China, aimed at reducing overfishing, are reducing the number of full-time and part-time fishers. The latter have decreased by almost 2 percent from two years before and there are plans to move 4 percent of the total number of fishers to other jobs by 2007. The policy tools to accomplish this include, among others, scrapping vessels and training redundant fishers in fish farming, where employment in 2002 increased by 6 percent compared with 2000 levels. A similar trend of increased employment opportunities in professions associated with culture practices is also evident in other countries.

In many industrialized countries, notably Japan and European countries, employment in fishing – and, as a consequence, in associated land-based professions – has been declining for several years. This is the result of several factors combined, including lower catches, programmes to reduce fishing capacity and the increased productivity brought about by technical progress. In the European Union (EU-15)⁶ the decline in the number of fishers in recent years averaged about 2 percent per year.

In Norway, employment in fishing has been decreasing for several years (Table 8). In 2002, about 18 650 people were employed in fishing (excluding fish farming), representing a decline of 8 percent compared with 2000 and almost 20 percent compared with five years before. The largest decline has occurred in fishing as a main occupation, which accounts for more than 75 percent of the total. In Iceland, average employment in fisheries was fairly stable in the five years to 2002, although there were seasonal variations; however, the share of fishing and fish processing – where the majority of workers are women – as a source of employment, dropped to 8 percent in 2002 from 10 percent five years earlier. In Japan, the numbers of marine fishery workers has been falling yearly since 1991, reaching a low of 243 320 people in 2002. The vast majority (72 percent) of these fishers were self-employed workers, as is commonly the case in the fishery profession.

The fishing workforce in most developed economies is advancing in age, mainly because of the profession’s decreasing attractiveness to younger generations. For instance, in Japan, 95 750 male fishers (or 47.2 percent of the total) were 60 years of age or older in 2002. The share of this age class has recently been increasing at a rate of 1 percent per year and in 2002 was nearly 25 percent above the figure of 20 years previously. By comparison, the younger group of workers (under 40 years of age), which represented one-quarter of the total number of marine fishery workers in 1982, had decreased to 12.1 percent of the 243 320 people engaged in marine fishery by 2002.

Complete data on the numbers of aquaculture workers worldwide are not available. The partial statistics that are available indicate an increase of about 8 percent per year since 1990, with part of the increase accounted for by improved reporting by countries. Since 2000, however, in many developed countries, figures on employment in aquaculture indicate that a levelling-off has started to occur, owing to a parallel slowdown of the rate of growth of farmed fish and shellfish production. After peaking in 1995, then decreasing for several years, employment in fish farming in Norway has been stable since 1998. In 2002, 3 457 people were employed, one-third of whom worked in hatcheries; men (accounting for 90 percent of the total) are employed mainly in salmon and trout production, while female workers, whose employment has been stable for many years, are largely employed in the production of fry and fingerlings rather than fish for consumption.

In countries where fishing and aquaculture are less prominent in the economy, comparative employment and income statistics at this level of detail are often not easily available. In many developing countries, which have the largest number of fishers, the spouses and families of fishers are occupied in coastal artisanal fisheries and associated activities. Reliable estimates of the number of people engaging in fishing on a part-time or occasional basis, or undertaking rural aquaculture as unpaid family workers, are difficult to obtain. As a consequence, the socio-economic importance of these activities is more difficult to measure, although their contribution to production and income, and to food security for coastal and rural communities, is substantial.

In the absence of other economic data, it is not possible to draw firm global conclusions on current trends from these numbers. Economics still makes fishing an attractive profession for many people in some areas. In China, where it is estimated that 25 million people work in the fish capture industry, in fish farming and in associated processing industries, the economic attraction is demonstrated by the fact that a large percentage of fishers are not local people but migrant workers from inland areas or neighbouring provinces. Part-time fishers might work seasonally in fishing and return to their village during the summer, or undertake a mix of agriculture and fish farming. The average earnings from fishing can offer higher incomes than those from agricultural farming, although jobs in manufacturing and other economic sectors, generally offer higher compensation than those in agriculture and fishing.

¹ FAO. The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture 2002. Rome, Box 2, p. 9.
² Includes aquatic plants.
³ Finfish and shellfish products on a whole, live weight basis.
⁴ Live weight equivalent.
⁵ Brackish-water production is assigned to either marine areas or inland areas depending on the area reported by the country. Thus, production in inland areas and marine areas represents the total of aquaculture production.
⁶ The members of the European Union prior to 1 May 2004: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom.